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I heard Jay Grimes say many years ago, "Everything in Pilates comes back down to this exercise". He was referring to The Double Leg Stretch in the mat work. In fact, it's part of the Beginner Mat. In the Beginner Mat, you start to learn two of the five in the "Stomach Series" or what is better known as, The Series of Five.

FLOW "The full workout is a flowing succession of exercises performed with vigorous dynamics. There is a minimum of movement, especially in the transitions, for a maximum flow." (The Pilates Studio Teacher Training Manual/1997)

BREATH "All exercises are done with Rhythm of the breath (and heartbeat). We inhale on the point of effort to send fresh oxygen to the muscles when they most need it. (However, this is not always a must.) We stress the exhalation, wring all the stale air out of the lungs, like you would "wring a wet towel dry." (The Pilates Studio Teacher Training Manual/1997)

"We have a brain for one reason and one reason only -- that’s to produce adaptable and complex movements. Movement is the only way we have affecting the world around us… I believe that to understand movement is to understand the whole brain. And therefore it’s important to remember when you are studying memory, cognition, sensory processing, they’re there for a reason, and that reason is action." - Daniel Wolper, neuroscientist

CONTROL: When the work is done from the center and with full concentration, you are in control of the movements performed. We do not let habit-most often wrong-or gravity take over. Joseph Pilates called his method " Art of Contrology" .

CONCENTRATION: "To fully benefit from the workout, the exercises are executed with focused concentration. It is the mind that guides the body. The exercises are not done haphazardly or on autopilot. We center the mind with the body in action. We bring the five aspects of the mind into the workout: intelligence; intuition; imagination; will and memory." (The Pilates Studio Teacher Training Manual/1997)

CENTERING: "The main focus point of the Method. All the work starts from and is sustained through the CENTER. Joseph Pilates called this center your "Powerhouse". We work around the CENTER LINE. Two straight lines run through and perpendicular to this Center Line: one from shoulder to shoulder; one from hip to hip. We call this the Frame or box. This framework centers the body in all actions. (The Pilates Studio Teacher Training Manual/1997)

Re-al adj. 2 Being in accordance with appearance or claim; genuine; not artificial or counterfeit. Funk and Wagnall/copyright 1980